Brazil: Dilma Rousseff Faces Impeachment

Suspended Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff will by the end of this August 2016 face impeachment trial following the decision of the Senate to vote in favour of the trial, thereby giving the green light for the legal proceeding, BBC reported.

Ms Rousseff is accused of breaking the budget law and illegal accounting practices. She is tainted by the scandal, in which her Workers' Party is accused of lining its campaign war chests with some of the country’s missing money. Specifically, Ms Rousseff has been accused of spending money without congressional approval and taking out unauthorised loans from state banks to boost the national budget ahead of the 2014 election, when she was re-elected.

The Senate last May suspended Dilma Rousseff from power and was replaced by Michel Temer. Senators early on Wednesday, August 10, 2016 in a marathon session that started on Tuesday, voted 59 to 21 in favour of going ahead with the trial against her. In the marathon debate, the Senate easily surpassed the required simple majority needed to decide on whether to try Ms Rousseff.

The trial is likely to be held at the end of this month, precisely in the week after the closing ceremony of the current Olympic Games taking place in Brazil, BBC reported. The law states that a two-thirds majority is needed in the final vote following the trial. Supreme Court President Ricardo Lewandowski, BBC said, told senators during the debate that they were about to "exercise one of the most serious tasks under the constitution".

The impeachment trial is highly awaited as its verdict will be determinant in the leadership of the country. Should, Dilma Rousseff finally be removed from office, the interim President and her former running mate Michel Temer, will continue to serve as president until the next election in 2018. .